Security forces in Kashmir have arrested a top overground worker (OGW) linked to the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam terror attack, using forensic leads from a partially damaged mobile phone charger.
Mohammad Yousuf Katari, a 26-year-old seasonal schoolteacher from Kulgam, was arrested on September 24 after being identified as a key logistical supporter of the terrorists involved in the Pahalgam massacre. His arrest followed a detailed forensic investigation into a charger recovered from the site of an encounter in July.
During “Operation Mahadev” on July 28, 2025, security forces eliminated three terrorists involved in the Pahalgam attack. Among the items recovered at the encounter site was a partially burnt Android phone charger. A police official revealed that forensic experts managed to trace the serial number on the charger, eventually tracking it through the manufacturing and purchase trail.
This led investigators to a Srinagar-based mobile dealer, who had sold the charger to a local second-hand phone vendor. The vendor’s records further led them to Katari, who had purchased the device and later supplied it to the terrorists.
Sources in the police confirmed that Katari had met the three terrorists at least four times in the Zabarwan hills and in south Kashmir. He provided them with logistical supplies, forest route guidance, and technical support, including the charger that linked him to the network.
Katari confessed during interrogation that he had guided the terrorists through the terrain and provided them with critical support, including the charger, during their planning and execution of the Pahalgam attack. As a seasonal teacher working with nomadic students, his deep knowledge of the local terrain made him a valuable asset for the terrorist group.
Officials believe Katari was part of a local support module of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), operating out of Kulgam and assisting foreign terrorists hiding in the forests of central Kashmir.
His arrest has provided security agencies with crucial insights into the logistics chain that enabled the movement and operations of the terror group across districts.
This case underscores how meticulous investigation of even the smallest evidence, in this case, a damaged Android charger, can lead to the unravelling of a larger terror network.